Don't You Wish it Were Enough?
by Princess Angel Rose
Summary: We've all heard that love conquers all, but what about when love isn't even enough for those so deeply in it. What happens when love can't do all that needs to be done? WE


**Disclaimer: Unfortunately, Pirates of the Caribbean is included in the list of things I do not own.**

Elizabeth Swann leaned on the railing of a small pirate ship, cursing the English government and the damn pirates. If not for them she would be Elizabeth Turner by this time. But it seemed that, because of her own stupidity, she would never become a Turner now.

Sailing to the end of the earth was proving to be a longer trip than even she had realized. Will had revealed to her that he had witnessed the seemingly romantic exchange she had with the captain before the Kraken devoured the Pearl. She couldn't get past the lump in her throat to explain the circumstances.

Now silent tears were running down her cheek. It didn't matter _why_ she had kissed him. As a lady of honor, she knew that. As someone in love, she also knew that it didn't even matter that she _had_ kissed him. The thing that meant something was a simple matter of emotions.

She had _enjoyed _that kiss.

That was all it came down to. Running her hands through his hair, having him wrap his arms around her waist, feeling the heat of that passion…it had thrilled her in a way Will hadn't in ages. Jack was wild, untamable, _free_. The way she wanted to be. She couldn't keep him pinned down, attached to her, and that was what she found so damn attractive. His true love was the sea, the very picture of escape.

But Will…Will truly loved her. It wasn't just some passing fancy or lustful desire. He _loved_ her. And she felt the same.

She cursed herself this time. Why had she done that? Why did she give up the security she felt with Will for the temporary freedom she felt in the arms of Jack? She gave the man she so desperately needed up for someone she didn't even want any more.

Footsteps approached from behind her and, not so much because of how prideful she had grown on her first adventure but because of how closed she had become in the past few days, she wiped her eyes.

"I apologize," she said curtly, not leaving. If they had no death wish, they would know to just leave her alone, but instead, a soft voice came from the position of the footsteps.

"What for, Ms. Swann?"

The last person she wanted to speak to at the moment, but the one she needed so badly to hear the truth. He spoke so calmly, cold and cordial, the way he always did when he was upset, unlike herself, who got angry and snapped. It broke her heart when he greeted her so formally. It was more than propriety causing him to call her that, it always had been. It was the same thing she wanted rid of from him, the same reason she had always asked him to call her Elizabeth: distance. When they were younger, they couldn't help it. She was the governor's daughter and he was the blacksmith's apprentice. They were of different ranks. But now…He was her best friend, her closest companion…the love of her life.

"Good evening, Mr. Turner," she returned, purposefully avoiding his question, praying that her tears had stopped and would not continue. As they stood in silence, the cool night wind hitting their faces as the waves gently rocked the boat and a thing mist of saltwater covered their feet, Elizabeth let a tear escape. And, as though she had never hurt him, Will was by her side, concerned.

"Elizabeth?"

"It was my fault," she choked out, less proud, less dignified than she had ever been. "I shackled him to the mast. He would have come with us, but I wouldn't let him."

It was amazing, she thought, the loyalty, the persistence, of this man. She had betrayed him and here he was, wiping her tears.

"Is that why you kissed him?"

For a moment, tears streaming down her face, she didn't respond. That _was_, of course, why she kissed him. But it wasn't why she enjoyed it. She had enjoyed the kiss because she had wanted Jack, but not anymore. She _needed_ Will horribly, so much so that her heart ached and her stomach was knotted. Finally, broken, she nodded. She gripped his shoulders for support, but not until his arms wrapped around her, telling her it was okay.

"Will, I've messed everything up."

She couldn't believe the words escaping her lips. He leaned in and whispered, "It's all right." His breath on her ear felt good and she wanted him to kiss her but, as he leaned down to do so, it took every ounce of feelings she had for him to make her pull back. She couldn't hurt him anymore, and she hated him kissing her when he didn't know the extent of something terrible that she had done.

"Will," she said softly, stopping him. It was the most painful thing she had ever done, even more painful than stopping him the first time he came that close to kissing her. "That kiss…"

"You did it to save us," he reasoned, understanding. And he nodded, no longer hurt, no longer upset, no longer angry.

Perhaps, Elizabeth thought, screaming inside from the pain, he should be.

"That's only how it began, Will."

He pulled back, looking in her eyes. From the look of it, this was hurting her more than it was him. But, oh, how his heart was torn in half.

She was crying again, something that, before this day, she hadn't done in ages. Will said nothing, just nodded, his face becoming stone. God, she hated when he did that. It was his turn, though, Elizabeth thought and, as she presumed, a moment later he walked away.

She went back to crying over the sea, facing it, letting the salty droplets make ripples in the otherwise fairly calm ocean.

"Will," she called, knowing he had stopped before she had even turned. She leaned back, clutching the rail behind her. "You know I love you, right?"

He said nothing, but the dim light in his eyes told her that he did and that he felt the same. That knowledge had to be enough for now, even as they realized the sad truth of it all.

Love may not be enough to get them through anything or to hold them together.

**A/N: Okay, so this completely defeats the purpose for which I wrote it. I've been on this site a lot since I saw the second movie and I've seen no happy endings for Will and Elizabeth, using the new material, and that stinks because, being the diehard romantic I am, I will always be rooting for Will. But this isn't exactly a happy ending either, because I couldn't get it to be, not still being as realistic as possible for a pirate story. It would take a lot of time to get to the happy ending, but I believe they could get there. Unfortunately, this is a one-shot, so you will all have to use your imaginations.**


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